1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to the control of a plurality of sets of series or parallel connected bulbs used for decorative, artistic, or Christmas lighting applications, and more particularly to that class which provides user-programmability of such a control system.
2. Description of Prior Art
Many patents have been granted for inventions that control the brightness or ON/OFF state of decorative and Christmas tree lighting sets. These inventions describe methods of controlling the amount and/or duration of power applied to the bulbs of a lighting string to vary the brightness or the ON/OFF time of the bulbs.
Some prior inventions of the type described above describe electronic circuitry that, for practical purposes, would be assembled and permanently attached to a fixed number of wires having a fixed number of bulbs to control a plurality of series connected lights, such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,890,000, Chou. Other inventions of this type are described as control units with multiple outlets for connecting lighting sets to be controlled by electronic or electromechanical means, which are contained inside the base of the unit, such as U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,125,781, Davis; 4,215,277, Weiner; and 4,678,926, Davis. But previously patented lighting controls of the type cited here do not adequately address the choices and flexibility that today's consumer seeks.
The present invention is a lighting control SYSTEM for control of a plurality of individual sets of series or parallel connected Christmas tree lighting strings, or the like. This system provides incredible flexibility, offering an infinite number of lighting display possibilities. The control unit enclosure houses the electronic circuitry and the controls that are used to program the system for user-selectable lighting display patterns when a plurality of lighting strings are used. The lighting strings connect directly to outlets on the enclosure instead of to outlets attached to some form of extension cord as described in patents cited previously. The approach taken with the present invention places the controls and lighting string connections in close, convenient proximity to one another.
The present invention was conceived and designed to provide the user with a variety of user-selectable lighting patterns to personalize their decorative and Christmas tree lighting displays, while also providing the flexibility to be used year-round for other decorative or artistic lighting applications where two-wire, Christmas tree lighting sets are typically utilized.
Unlike previous inventions where the control unit is limited to a predetermined group of fixed patterns, or when packaged for practical applications control only a fixed number of bulbs, the present invention allows the user to select a blinking rate or ON/OFF state of their choice from a plurality of available lighting condition signals for each individual lighting string, it provides a means for timing phase synchronization of any combination of outlets, provides an ON/OFF memory function that retains user-selected lighting display patterns, and allows for interchangeability of strings having a different number of series or parallel connected bulbs.